IMPROVING COORDINATION OF SUPERVISION.

SEC. 108. IMPROVING COORDINATION OF SUPERVISION. Section 17 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78q) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: “(i) Coordination of Examining Authorities.— “(1) Elimination of duplication.—The Commission and the examining authorities, through cooperation and coordination of examination and oversight activities, shall eliminate any unnecessary and burdensome duplication in the examination process. “(2) Coordination of examinations.—The Commission and the examining authorities shall share such information, including reports of examinations, customer complaint information, and other nonpublic regulatory information, as appropriate to foster a coordinated approach to regulatory oversight of brokers and dealers that are subject to examination by more than one examining authority. “(3) Examinations for cause.—At any time, any examining authority may conduct an examination for cause of any broker or dealer subject to its jurisdiction. “(4) Confidentiality.— “(A) In general.—Section 24 shall apply to the sharing of information in accordance with this subsection. The Commission shall take appropriate action under section 110 STAT. 342624(c) to ensure that such information is not inappropriately disclosed. “(B) Appropriate disclosure not prohibited.—Nothing in this paragraph authorizes the Commission or any examining authority to withhold information from the Congress, or prevent the Commission or any examining authority from complying with a request for information from any other Federal department or agency requesting the information for purposes within the scope of its jurisdiction, or complying with an order of a court of the United States in an action brought by the United States or the Commission. “(5) Definition.—For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘examining authority’ means a self-regulatory organization registered with the Commission under this title (other than a registered clearing agency) with the authority to examine, inspect, and otherwise oversee the activities of a registered broker or dealer.”.